Identity released in Oct. 14 Petersburg murder; Family Dollar suspect set for arraignment

Bill Atkinson, Petersburg Progress-Index
·2 min read

PETERSBURG — While police continue to investigate the shooting death of a 65-year-old man Monday in a Walnut Hill business parking lot, the identity of the city's previous homicide victim was released Tuesday afternoon.

Forty-year-old Walter R. Sykes III of Petersburg was killed and another person critically injured when they were shot Oct. 14 in the area of Sixth and Patrick streets. A police spokesperson said Sykes died at the scene.

The second victim, whose name and age were not released, was taken to an area hospital with critical injuries, but police say that person has since been released.

Details on suspect information and motive for the shooting have not been released.

Meanwhile, the man police say shot 65-year-old Robert Morton Booker Jr. to death Monday afternoon outside a Family Dollar on South Crater Road will have his first court appearance later this week. Isaiah Dantee Tyree, 31, of Prince George County, has been charged with first-degree murder, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.

His arraignment is set for 8:30 a.m. Thursday in Petersburg General District Court.

According to reports, police claim Tyree shot Booker, then attempted to elude police through downtown and Delectable Heights before he was caught on U.S. Route 1 in Dinwiddie.

Booker, who lived on Hazel Drive in northern Dinwiddie County, died at the scene.

Sykes and Booker are Petersburg's 17th and 18th homicides of the year. Other victims this year are:

  • Javarius Desmore, killed March 14 on Pin Oaks Drive;

  • Antonio Walker, killed April 5 on Henrico Street;

  • Shaun Hankins, killed April 24 on Leavenworth Street;

  • Brian Chambers, killed May 24 at the Budget Inn on Jamestown Drive;

  • Tewana Williams, killed May 27 on Talley Avenue;

  • Anthony Williams, killed June 3 on Gillfield Drive;

  • K’Von Morgan (juvenile), killed June 17 at Pecan Acres Apartments;

  • Ke’Asia Powell, killed June 26 on East Wythe Street;

  • Lucky Dwayne Burress, killed June 26 on Berkeley Avenue;

  • Darrell D. Morton, killed July 6 at Crater Square Apartments;

  • Kirk Nims, killed July 11 on Halifax Street.

  • Johnny Englehart Jr., killed Aug. 8 on Rome Street;

  • Matthew Gibbs, 19, of Columbia, South Carolina, killed Aug. 24 on Wakefield Street;

  • Adrionna Brooks West, 20, of Chester, killed Sept. 3 in the 700 block of High Street; and

  • Fatin Ibn Hassan Rhone, 29, killed Sept. 24 at the intersection of North Boulevard and South Sycamore Street.

Of those murders, police have made arrests in seven of them.

Bill Atkinson (he/him/his) is an award-winning journalist who covers breaking news, government and politics. Reach him at batkinson@progress-index.com or on X (formerly known as Twitter) at @BAtkinson_PI.

This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Petersburg releases ID of city's 17th homicide victim this year